Page 9 of Out of Bounds
“Yes.” The word sounds far away as I say it.
“And how long are you with him on thesemeetings? Does he stay the night at your place? And you the same at his?”
Please Lord restrain me from snapping, I really don’t see why this is relevant.
My cheeks heat with an unwelcomed blush as I gear up to answer his probing question.
“Yes,” I grate out.
His jaw clenches and there’s a noticeable tick in his beard.
An unreadable expression comes into his face and clouds his eyes. It looks like rage, but I can’t be certain. Rage wouldn’t make sense.
“Bree, you spent all that time with this guy, slept with him, and you had no idea he was a fucking criminal?” Now he’s looking at me like I’m stupid.
“No, I didn’t. My ears to God,” I rasp and clap my hand to my heart the way Mamma does when she speaks to Pastor Johnson. “He wasn’t like that with me. He was always giving me things and taking care of me. There was nothing to suggest anything untoward about him.”
“Are you on drugs?” He asks the question so fast it catches me off guard. Again, I’m reminded of my crime dramas. Cops try to do that to throw you and catch you in a lie. I can’t believe he’s trying that with me.
“I’m not on drugs! Damn you, and damn it to hell, my relationship with Liev was anything but solid. I was going to give it another month before I ended things.”
That’s the first time I said that outside my head, and who would have thought I would tell Ethan Carson before I told Quinn. Or even confirmed what I was going to do to myself.
As perfect as things were, I planned to break up with Liev after Lucille’s wedding. Then I wouldn’t feel lame going solo to her upcoming nuptials to Prince De Longsell. I wouldn’t be the old maid she called me when we last saw each other.
Ethan looks surprised to hear the declaration but gives nothing more away.
“So, you weren’t serious about him?” he clarifies.
“No.”
“But he was serious about you.”
“Clearly not if I’m sitting here.” I recall how Liev was just going to leave me to the cops.
Fuck him. I hope he gets what’s coming to him.
Ethan looks at me for a moment and I pray he drops the subject.
“Did you ever see anything suspicious?”
“No, I did not.”
“Is there anything else you can tell me?”
I shake my head. “I didn’t know what he was like. I swear it.”
“Bree, Liev Ivanov is a very bad man. I suggest you think twice next time before you get involved with someone like him.”
I feel like I’m being lectured like an idiot, but what else is he supposed to think?
“Okay, fine, lesson learned. Can you please tell me what’s going to happen to me?”
He schools his face and temples his fingers. “Well right now, I’ll be watching you. I hope you don’t have any plans to leave the country because then Interpol and Homeland security would get involved, and Christ knows where you’d end up.”
My heart seizes. “Interpol and Homeland security?”
“Lookdarlin,” he states borrowing my accent like he did when we were kids. “This ain’t Mayberry or Kansas. There is no wizard to save you, or any of them Oom-pah loom-pah creatures running up and down the yellow brick road.”
